Translation of the Dutch text by Jasmijn van Holsteijn | Photo: Max de Moor | 6 August 2026
You have been selected as the second goalkeeper for the Hockey World Cup. How does that feel?
'It was difficult. It was almost a grieving process that I went through. At first, I felt quite down. I had worked so hard for it for such a long time, but it didn’t happen. As a field player, if you make the squad, you know you will play. As a goalkeeper, it is different. There is only one place, and that is the place you want.
A month and a half ago, I was told I wasn’t going to be the first-choice goalkeeper. I was really disappointed. But quite quickly afterwards, I decided that I still wanted to go, because I enjoy being part of this team too much.'
Is the preparation different as a second-choice goalkeeper compared with being the first-choice goalkeeper?
'Yes. As the first-choice goalkeeper, you are completely focused on your role. I look after myself as well as possible, make sure I get enough sleep and have everything in place to perform on the pitch. As the second-choice goalkeeper, you try to add value to the team in other ways: by talking to teammates, making jokes or having a coffee together.
Some players prefer to stay completely focused, while others look for interaction. Luckily, I can sense what each person needs, because we have already been through so much together.'
After a mistake, everyone looks at the goalkeeper. What goes through your mind in that moment?
'Of course, you are disappointed. In those situations, I usually walk behind my goal for a moment, take a sip of water and briefly analyse what happened. What did I do well? What could I have done better? When I return to the goal and put my helmet back on, I think: it’s done, we move on.
The difficult thing about being a goalkeeper is that sometimes it takes ten or fifteen minutes before the next ball comes your way. If those thoughts come back, I focus on my breathing.'
You studied Medicine at VU Amsterdam. What kind of student were you?
'Not really the ideal student who studied hard every day. I tried to attend as many lectures, group sessions and practicals as possible, but I missed a lot because of hockey. I often started revising shortly before exams.
During my Bachelor’s it worked out fine. The Master’s was more challenging, because that is when you start your clinical placements and spend three years working in hospitals. At that point, I did wonder how I was going to combine it with hockey.'
How did you make that work?
'Thanks to the elite sports scheme, I was able to do my clinical placements four days a week instead of five and was placed in a hospital close to home. At that time, I was the third goalkeeper for the Netherlands and therefore didn’t travel on every international trip. That gave me time to complete my placements.
It was a tough period, though. In surgery, the morning handover started at 7.30 am. I would then work until five o’clock and drive straight to the hockey club. I had video meetings and training sessions until nine in the evening. After that, I went home, straight to bed, and the next morning my alarm went off again at six.'
After your clinical placements, you started a PhD.
'That’s right. I am almost finished with my PhD research into surgery for stomach and oesophageal cancer. Officially, I have a 36-hour working week, and on top of that I train around 25 hours a week. Sometimes I wonder: what if I had focused only on hockey? But I think I would have been less happy.
I enjoy keeping my mind active. I also genuinely believe that my development away from the pitch has helped me become better on it. Maybe I would have progressed further as a goalkeeper if I had focused solely on hockey. But if I could do it all over again, I would make exactly the same choices.'
What similarities do you see between goalkeeping and Medicine?
'As a goalkeeper, you are constantly analysing what is happening. What are this player’s preferences? How does he finish? Where is the danger coming from? You are constantly making decisions.
In Medicine, you do much the same thing. You observe, gather information and decide what the best approach is. In surgery, I find the speed at which you have to adapt particularly interesting: someone comes in, you analyse the problem and then you decide what action to take, or whether action is needed at all. Both on the pitch and in the operating theatre, I stay calm. I can keep a clear head.'
Is a career in the hospital the next step after your hockey career?
'Yes, but I don’t want to do it halfway. And I don’t want to do top-level sport halfway either. I was able to organise most of my PhD research in my own time. Between training sessions, when you have mandatory rest and most people are scrolling on their phones, I would open my laptop and work. As a doctor in training, it is different. You have to be present and you don’t know how long the day will last.
At some point, I will have to choose. I don’t know exactly when that will be yet. It gives me peace of mind knowing there is no wrong choice. I love hockey, and I love surgery too.'
What do you hope to look back on after the World Cup?
'I hope, of course, that I get the chance to be in goal for a moment, even if it is only five minutes. But above all, I hope that as a team we get everything out of ourselves.
The goal is gold. We know each other inside out. I hope that, with the connection we have as a team, we can work towards a peak moment where everything comes together.'
